


Attracted to the Dark

by essenceofotome



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Deathshipping, Eventual Smut, M/M, Murder, Psychological Horror, Serial Killer, Stalking, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Unhealthy Relationships, Violence, Yandere, will update tags as the story progresses
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-03
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-16 02:53:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29818320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/essenceofotome/pseuds/essenceofotome
Summary: In an AU setting where Ryou Bakura is an established writer and the Millennium Items never took place, a super fan by the name of Marik gains interest and travels across the ocean to get closer to his favorite writer. Only, he's harboring a dark secret of his own. How will Ryou manage when he finds out his new love interest has been killing in his name?
Relationships: Bakura Ryou/Yami Marik
Comments: 1
Kudos: 7





	Attracted to the Dark

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not sure how many people will recognize this since my original fic was a DECADE old, but I'm rewriting it sans the problematic tropes and with a lingering need to give this story at least some sort of closure. Tags will be updated as the story progresses. Second chapter is violent, I just haven't edited it yet to post it.

Ryou leaned over his vanity once more, primping in the mirror. He wanted to look just right for the event since he would be signing books all evening. He ran a cue-tip along the corner of his eyelid to clean up the residual eyeliner before examining the rest of his face for any signs of blemishes or mistakes. He was feeling a mixture of self-consciousness and vanity as he checked himself out in the mirror, tilting his head to find his best angle.

Letting out a puff of air, he decided to tie his hair back with the red ribbon that had been dangling over a small skull statue on his dresser, leaving two white tufts of hair to frame his face and tucking the rest that wouldn’t fit into the ponytail behind his ears. He was dressed reserved, yet enticing. _Perfect_. He smiled to himself as he gave a little twirl in the mirror, examining his outfit. The long sleeved shirt had a silken material that clung to his frame but not in a gaudy way. He had rolled up the sleeves just enough to show off the red cuffs for the sake of contrast. He wore a black halter underneath the shirt just in case he needed to unbutton the top of his shirt.

After a few more moments of this he finally gave himself a small chuckle. “You look fine, it’ll be fine,” he spoke aloud to himself as he moved across the room to pick up a small stack of books he had already pre-signed and made his way out of his room, shuffling backwards to open the door with his elbow.

It wasn’t long before he was pulling up at the venue. He couldn’t help but stare wide-eyed at the line that had already formed at the desk he had been assigned to. It always amazed him that people even liked his work. He kept his head down, giving a light chuckle to himself as he snuck around toward the back entrance. It was childish, even though he had full permission to use the employee entrance; somehow it still felt like he was doing something a little off the beaten path. In his mind, he liked to imagine he was sneaking into the building, skirting around the shadows of the hallway to try not to get caught. If he ran into anyone he would simply brush it off.

It wasn’t long before he found his way to the signing table, setting the stack of books he had brought him toward the front, next to the decorative glass that held several copies of the same pen. He was a little surprised at how accommodating the venue had been, since they helped set up for him prior to his arrival. Several of his headshots were lined up and ready for him to sign and he pursed his lips at the thought. He couldn’t quite understand why people would want a copy of his face for a book that he wrote, but his fans were nearly feral over them. It was more money in his pocket either way.

The lights went from dim to bright as the event was set to begin, and the line of people were allowed to enter in to greet him at long last. The group of nameless faces was mostly women, which was little surprise to the man. A part of him couldn’t help but wonder if some of them had actually read his works, but he didn’t want to be presumptuous. The point of the matter was that they were there to see _him_. A dream come true really.

He was brought out of his reverie when a young woman approached him. He smiled pleasantly in return, “Why, hello there miss. Which would you like?” His words were practiced, soft and melodic. He had taken plenty of time recording himself to listen to his voice back to find the perfect pitch. Everything had to be perfect. She took one of his headshots and a fresh copy of his book, asking him to sign the portrait. “And who will I be signing this out to?”

“Oh! U-Um, that would be me. My name is Anzu! I’m a really big fan of yours,” she replied in a shy, but cheery voice, gaining confidence as she continued on. Ryou found himself tuning her out just slightly, thinking he had heard her name before by chance, but he wasn’t able to pull at his memories.

“Ah, a lovely name for such an exquisite lady,” he smoothed over the fact he wasn’t listening as intently as he should have been with a compliment. He didn’t want to come off as aloof. Eccentric was one thing, but he wouldn’t be where he was without his fans and he didn’t want to be a disappointment to them. Why else would he have put so much effort into making everything go well?

She quickly became flustered and he gave her a wink as she clutched the merchandise toward her chest, moving down the line to make room for the next person as the employee seated next to Ryou handed her a receipt for her purchase. He had never really made his sexuality public. It was really none of their business who he was interested in, but he was savvy to the concept of sex appeal and used it to his advantage. It didn’t matter to him either way since he wasn’t about to date one of his fans.

Most of the line went the same. A compliment, a smile, the occasional small talk to thank them for coming out today. He was falling into a routine, until he was met with someone who broke the cycle of monotony. A pair of icy amethyst eyes narrowed at him for a moment, glancing over him. Perhaps he was different in person than he had expected? It made Ryou’s smile falter for just a moment. However, despite his mild discomfort, he found himself entranced by those eyes.

‘ _Such an unusual color_ ,’ he thought to himself, as his eyes trailed over the man’s other features. He was darkly tanned with wild blonde hair. Ryou found himself fixating on the way his hair seemed to have a mind of its own, jutting out wildly around his head like a lion’s mane. The man was dressed in a black sleeveless shirt that tucked into his belted black jeans. His entire outfit was dark, save for the golden jewelry that he wore around his arms, neck, and ears. He definitely had an alluring presence about him.

“Why, hello there, Mr. Bakura,” he finally spoke, the corner of his lips twisting into a smile as he placed a hand on the table, leaning forward as he spoke, “Your writing has captivated my attention almost as much as you have.” The man’s voice was deep and seductive, reminded him much of the way he had envisioned his lead character’s interest to be and he found himself blushing slightly, the way his ears pricked pleasantly at the sound.

“Marik,” he spoke again, cocking his head to the side curiously. Ryou looked like he was in a daze for a moment before he replied. “Hmm?” he startled, snapping out of his fantasy and back to reality. He had no idea how long he had been staring for, but judging by the look the stranger was giving him it was enough to be embarrassed about. He heard a dark chuckle in response, as though the man had read his thoughts, and it sent chills up his spine.

“Please, make it out to _Marik_ ,” the stranger repeated. ‘ _Marik, what a lovely name,_ ’ he found himself thinking. It was a genuine compliment in his mind, in sharp contrast to how he had been using that word all night. Ryou felt the heat radiating off of his cheeks as he took out a fresh pen, signing his name to Marik, followed by a little heart to dot the **_i_ **that did not go unnoticed by the other. When he went to hand the signed headshot over to the man, their fingers brushed against one another and Ryou swore he felt an almost electrical current tingle through his fingers at the contact.

He was left feeling dazed as the man walked away, and Ryou cursed himself for not asking for some method of contact from him. He scolded himself mentally, reminding himself he wasn’t there to pick up a date, and that he was there to sign for his fans. He hoped he would see him around again, perhaps at another signing. If they crossed paths again, then he would ask. Domino City wasn’t too large, even if it did hold several important enterprises. He just hoped it wasn’t the last time he would see that man.

The rest of the night felt uneventful after such an intense, but brief, moment with that strange fellow. Once he arrived home, he drug himself up the stairs only to flop down ungraciously on his bed. He started the signing at 8 p.m. and now it was nearly midnight. His hand was sore from all the writing he had done. His hands were unused to writing with an actual pen, favoring his laptop for his work. He let out a sigh, and let his mind wander back to the stranger once more.

Why was he so enthralled by his eyes? There was something about them that made his heart flutter, and he wasn’t sure if it was from attraction or fear. He had such an intense presence about him, but he couldn’t seem to place a finger on it. He should have asked him out for drinks after. Then he wouldn’t just be laying on his bed like a teenager thinking about a crush.

“Gods…I hope he’s single,” he prayed out loud, choosing the plural on the off chance at least one of the gods were listening. He laughed to himself, feeling silly for falling head over heels over a stranger. He wasn’t in love, he knew that much. It was a more, physical attraction, but there was definitely something about the encounter that left him feeling swept up in the emotion.

He soon sighed, placing a hand over his face and dragging it down to his chin, feeling frustrated. He needed a cold shower to be able to sleep because he was not about to jerk it to a stranger. It just felt wrong.

\---

The next morning Ryou woke up and went straight to the bathroom to brush his teeth and hair. The shower had done wonders to help him sleep, but he needed to get his mind off of this “perfect” stranger. There was a party going on later that day, and he had been on the cusp of not going. But what else was he going to do then? Sit in his room and mope about being single? It didn’t exactly sound like a fun way to spend his time. And who knows, maybe he’d watch an interaction that could be fuel for his next plot.

He found himself thinking about where he even wanted to take his next book. Briefly, he thought about inserting Marik into the book to see if he figured it out but he brushed away the thought. It would be more than obvious if he based a character off of such a unique looking man with amethyst eyes. Checking the time, he rushed to get dressed, figuring he could eat once he got there. It was scheduled to start in roughly an hour, and he figured he could grab a coffee on the way over.

On second thought, perhaps he would just see what was there at the party. It was going to be filled with socialites and he didn’t want to have coffee stained teeth when he arrived. Instead, he focused on picking out another cute outfit, this time going for a white dress shirt with a black overcoat that he left untucked over his black slacks. He rubbed the sleep from his eye and figured he would primp himself in the mirror again to make sure he looked presentable after being up so late the night before.

Lastly, he clasped a wristwatch onto his wrist, carefully checking to make sure that the hands matched the time on his phone before slipping the cell into his pocket. Once he was satisfied with his overall appearance, he locked up the house after himself and hopped into his car once more. “It’ll be nice to get out of the house today anyway,” he spoke to himself as he drove, “It’s not like I have anything to do right now anyway.” He was reasoning with himself because despite the fact that he didn’t want to hang around the house doing nothing all day, he wasn’t exactly a social butterfly either.

He groaned to himself, wishing he had a better social life in this down. It was difficult finding friends who weren’t superficial, and since he had money, it made the search more difficult. He thought it would have been easier in fact, but too many people just wanted to bum off of him and he didn’t like feeling used. He was lost in thought as he arrived at the mansion, passing his keys off to the valet. While he had money, he was destitute compared to Kaiba.

He blew a puff of hair away from his face as he eyed the mansion in distaste. It was an offensively large building in Ryou’s opinion, but his friend would have it no other way. Well, _friend_ was a loose term. He shook his head, walking up to the entrance. It was a beautiful building, just far too….much. He was greeted inside and he smiled at the doorkeeper as he passed through, leaving his overcoat on a hook along with the others.

He locked eyes with another across the room as soon as he entered the room and he lit up into a smile as the man came up for a quick hug. “Ryou! Good to see you, it’s been ages. How’s the writing been treating you?” he jabbed him in the side playfully as he spoke, his dark ponytail swaying as he teased Ryou. “Looks like you’ve gotten a nice fan base going for yourself!”

The man chuckled and Ryou found himself following suit, swept up in his energy. “It’s nice to see you too, Otogi,” he beamed. Otogi was one of his closer friends, and was somebody he knew he could rely on. He was also an incredible social butterfly who knew almost everyone in the city. He was generally into gossip but was tight lipped when it came to any of his friends, which Ryou appreciated. They had been friends since high school, after all.

“It’s been nice, it really has. I was up late last night with a signing. I didn’t get to sleep until a little past one in the morning,” he admitted, earning a whistle in return from the other man and a pat on the back.

“Not bad! You know, some authors get to spend almost an entire day signing for those events. You’re lucky your hand didn’t fall off,” he feigned a dramatic tone is his voice as he goaded the writer, who rolled his eyes in turn. “Oh, don’t forget. I got you that spot on TV for Friday. I had to pull a few strings to get it through, but I’d do anything for my favorite little occultist,” he teased again, grabbing two glasses of wine off of a tray nearby and handing one to Ryou.

The white haired man just grinned in return, toasting the glasses together with a cheesy _clink_. “Thank you, thank you my fine sir,” he replied with a dramatic bow and a wave of his hand as he dipped it toward his chest. He smiled slyly as he stood back up, “I really am grateful. I’ll make it up to you sometime soon, I promise.”

Otogi smiled widely as he finished off his glass of wine quickly, earning a raised eyebrow from Ryou. Was he trying to get drunk? Ryou could only wonder. He didn’t have time to mull over the thought for long before Otogi moved onto the next topic. “So, have you heard about the new book critic in town yet?” he asked, leaning against a wall as he took another glass of wine in his hand. “They say he’s a real hard ass, but your work is pretty good so maybe he’d even be interesting in sponsoring you. He just flew in this week from Egypt,” he was speaking in a hushed tone so that their conversation was private.

Ryou crossed his arms as he thought about the information, taking a sip from his own glass as he listened. “Egypt, huh? That’s where my dad worked when I was growing up,” he mused, recalling fond memories of when his father would even bring him along on his archeology digs. Though mostly he would just stay in the hotel while his father would go off to work. “What’s his name?” he followed up his thought, taking another sip of his wine.

“His name is Marik Ishtar,” the man answered, brimming with excitement. “Seto invited him here today as a welcome to the city. He’s got a lot of connections, so of course he had to extend the offer,” he continued on with a chuckle. Seto was never one to miss out on a business opportunity.

Ryou’s eyes widened at that piece of information, nearly dropping the glass from his hand. He swallowed, glancing around the room. He almost pinched himself to make sure he wasn’t dreaming. It hadn’t even been a full day since he had met the man and already he was met with the prospect he may well run into him again today. It didn’t take long at all to spot the blonde’s spiky hair from across the room.

Apparently, he had been spotted as well, since the man was making his way over on his own accord. Ryou gave a small wave and a shy smile broke out across his face as Marik came within earshot. The taller man extended a hand in greeting, taking Ryou’s free hand in a firm, but lingering handshake.

“So we meet again,” his deep voice practically purred, and Ryou had to take a step back to accommodate his personal space. He felt like the room had become stuffy as he cleared his throat before speaking, met face to face with those beautiful eyes once more. “Yes, quite. Marik, was it?” he replied coyly, followed with a nervous titter.

The exchange did not go unnoticed by Otogi, who was smiling knowingly at Ryou for a moment before chipping in, “So, the two of you have already met? I guess that makes my job easier,” he placed a hand on Ryou’s shoulder, giving him a light squeeze as he walked past him. “I’m just going to leave you two to catch up with each other.”

He was quick to slip into the crowd, leaving Ryou alone with the other man. For a moment it looked as though Marik was trying to process if he had scared off Otogi since he was so quick to make his exit, but he was quick to hide the expression on his face. He glanced back down at Ryou with a handsome smile.

“You remembered,” he seemed pleased with this knowledge and nodded. His hair bounced with his movement, making Ryou wonder if it was softer than it appeared to be. “Yes, and of course, you’re Ryou Bakura,” his voice was smooth as he spoke and Ryou straightened his back to shake away the butterflies that were fluttering about in his stomach. What was it about this man that drew him like a moth to a dazzling flame?

“I read the book you released last night,” he continued on. “It was…enticing. Did you write it from personal experience?” He was raising a suggestive eyebrow down at Ryou and it took the man a moment to realize the particular scene he was referencing before his face was dusted with a rose color. It had been one of his steamier books to date, and he had written a particularly raunchy sex scene for a little fan service. He cleared his throat again, taking another sip of his wine as he averted his gaze. “I don’t think that’s a particularly appropriate question,” he started, his voice taking on a mildly defensive tone. “But if you must know I wrote it purely off of fantasy.”

He closed his eyes, furrowing his brow as he realized that wasn’t the most delicate way of phrasing things. He glanced over at Marik only to find the man largely unfazed. His eyebrows were raised, indicating…interest? Ryou couldn’t quite tell. He had never met someone he had such a hard time reading before. His gaze appeared calculating, but beyond that he really couldn’t seem to get a good guess what was going on in that head of his.

The taller man slipped into a more pleasant expression before leaning in, “What do you say we take this conversation outside where we can speak privately? I just want to talk business, no need to be so guarded around me,” he spoke as he placed a hand on Ryou’s back, quietly guiding him outside toward the balcony. The fresh air was a welcome change to the stifling air of the building, in Ryou’s opinion.

Marik leaned against the railing, crossing his arms over his chest as he stared up at the sky. “I’ve been thinking,” he started, “Ever since I first ran across your work, I’ve wanted to get to know the mastermind behind the script.” He tilted his head toward Ryou, giving him another grin as he watched him with those mysterious eyes of his, “Especially the _darker_ themed ones. I like the way your mind works…” he trailed off, and Ryou nodded, remaining silent as he waited for the man to get to his point. He was incredibly flattered, however, and couldn’t hide the smile that had blossomed on his own face.

“I want you to write for me. I’ll commission you and take care of the publishing cost. All you have to do is write for me, and I’ll take care of the rest,” his offer was too good to be true.

Ryou thought for a moment how best to phrase his hesitation. “What’s the catch?” he asked, deciding to take a direct approach after all. For some reason, he didn’t feel the need to mince words around the man. Marik narrowed his eyes slightly but not threateningly as his grin never once weakened. 

“No, no catch. I’m just a big fan of yours and I want to see you flourish,” he explained. Ryou felt as though he could faint right then and there. He took a deep breath, filling his lungs with air as he steadied himself against the rails, looking out at the outline of the city on the horizon, beyond the woods that surrounded the mansion.

“I would appreciate that very much,” he replied, turning to give Marik a dazzling smile. He saw the man lean forward for just a moment before pulling back. “Then we have a deal?” he asked, holding his hand out for the smaller man to take in his. Ryou was hesitant, but shook his hand firmly. “Yes, of course!!”

They exchanged contact information and Ryou felt like he was on cloud nine the entire time. Marik glanced down at the number saved in his phone and back up at the fidgeting man in front of him. “Fantastic, I’ll be seeing you around, Ryou Bakura,” he mused in his low voice, giving the man a wink before turning his back and walking back into the crowd of the party, leaving Ryou alone with his thoughts.

He wanted to jump for joy, to lie down on the floor, and scream all at once. But he did none of those. He could only fixate on the fact that the man that he had been so infatuated with the night before was actually some sort of rich super-fan who wanted to support him. It all felt like a dream.

 _Well, so much for clearing my head of ever seeing him again,_ he thought pleasantly to himself.


End file.
